Piston packing-ring.



W. THOMPSON.

I PISTON'PAUKING RING. APPLICATION FILED mm: 10, 1911.

Paijented. July 9, 1912.

3 wumilo'c i a citizen of the or channel in the piston able metal and p in the provision WALTEE' 'rnonrson, or cuss Tim, PENNSYLVANIA.

PISTON PACKING-RING.

Application filed June 10,

To all whom it may concern. I

Be it known that I, WAL'rhn THOMPSON,

United States, residing at Chester, inv the county of Delaware and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Piston Packing-Ringabf which the following is aspecification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings. r

This invention relates to packing rings for pistons and more particularly to packing rings of that character made up of a plurality of segments independently movable circumferentially and radially with respect to the pist0n,-t-he present invention having for its principal object the provision of such ring sections so constructed and mounted in the piston as to absolutely prevent leakage around the periphery of the cylinder.

A further objectof the invention resides of a plurality of packing ring sections of the above described char acter, the opposed ends of adjacent sections having sliding movement upon each other and upon the walls of the annular groove head in which said sections are seated.

A further object of the invention is to provide improved means for mounting the ring sections in the piston head, and guiding the same in their radial movement.

WVith the above arid other objects in view, the invention consists of the novel features of construction, combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter fully described and claimed, and illustratedin the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a side elevation of a piston showing two of my improved segmental packing rings arranged therein; Fig. 2 is an enlarged section taken on the.line 2-42 of Fig. 1; Fig/3 is asection taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2; and Fig. t is a detail perspective view of one of the ring segments.

Referring in detail to the drawing 5 designates the piston head which is preferably constructed from brass or other suitis provided with one or more annular grooves or channels 6. Radially extending cylindrical recesses or sockets 7 are formed in said head. at diametrically opposite points and open into the channel 6.

Within the channel 6 of the pistonh'ead, a plurality of ring segments 8 are niovably arranged, said. segments being also coriring Specification of Letters Patent.

'structed from brass or other desired metal, each of said ring segments describing substantially one-quarter of a circle. The convex faces ofsaid segments lie in the same plane as the periphery of the piston head when' the segments are wholly disposed within the annular channel or groove 6 Each of the acking ring sections is" made up of a body ar 9 which is of substantially inverted T-shape form and the longitudinal side strips 10 which are arranged upon the laterally extending base flanges 9- of the body bar. These side strips are securely riveted'to the body bar as indicated at 11 and one of their ends is extended beyond one end of the body bar as at 12 wherebysaid strips provide a short longitudinal recess 13 between their opposed faces. The other ends of -the strips 10 terminate in advance of the opposite end of the body bar so as. to provide the recesses 14 on opposite sides of the vertical portions of the inverted T-shaped body bar which receive the projecting ends 12 of the side strips 10 on the opposed end of the adjacent ring section. To -the concave face of the body bar 9, a stud is secured, said pin being its attached end with an annular enlargement or shoulder 16. In the cylindrical recesses or sockets 7 of the piston head the coiled springs 17 are arranged, and these springs are adapted to loosely receive the pins 15 carried by the ring segments, the

Patented July 9, 1912.. 1911. Serial No. 632,383. I I

or cylindrical pin 15 formed adjacent outer ends of said springs engaging the I annular shoulders 16 of said pins andnormally acting to, force the ring segments outwardly beyond the periphery of the piston head.

From reference to Fig. 3, wherein the packing ring segments are shown in the positions they would occupy when the piston is working in its cylinder, it-will be observed that-the extending end portions 12 of the metallic side strips 10 'of the ring segments engage closely'up'on the base flanges 11 of the adjacent ring segment, and are adapted to slide thereon ci'rcumferentially 1 v 05 in the reciprocation of the piston so as to reduce to a minimum the frict-ion'induced between said ringsegments' and the wall of the piston cylinder. It will also be noted that the projecting ends 12 of the side strips 10 substantially entirely fill the space betweenahe. opposed walls of the groove or channel 6 of the cylinder head and the opmoved and replaced 'body bar 9 which -in which the ends of said strips are received.

metallic packing use in connection I be formed. from posite sides of the vertical portion of the provides the recesses 13 This interfitting engagement of the opposed ends of the ring segments will effectually prevent the escape of steam, gases or other the periphery of the Wears, the ring close engagement therewith by means of the springs 17 arranged in the cylinder head. In the event that the side stri s 10 of any one of'the sec-tions should become so far WOIIl as to inefiectually perform their function of preventing leakage around the packing ring, said side strips may be readily re f 1 h 1by new ones. Thus a per set y tig t noneaking packin' rin is provided, the efiiciency of which may be indefinitely. maintained at a very slight expense. i

From the foregoing it is thought that the construction and operation of my improved ring will be properly understood. I

While the device is primarily devised for p with gas engines, it will of course be understood that it is not limited 'to such-use but may be mployed in connection with reciprocating pistons such as are ,used for a great many different purposes. I

If desired the packing ring sections may a harder metal than that of the piston head itself so that the use of the piston can be continued even after the same becomes so far worm that it could not be employed withoutthe use of a packing of form and proportion without be obvious that the device is susceptible of i a greatmany other minor modifications in departing from the essential feature or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention.

Having thus described the invention What isclaimed is A device of the character describedfa piston having a plurality of annular rectangular grooves formed therein, a ring mounted in each of said grooves comprising a plurality of spaced arcuate sections, a

plurality of radially extending cylindrical sockets mounted in said piston and communicating With said grooves, each of said arcuate sections consisting of a substantially inverted Tshaped bar, arcuate side strips seated upon-the lateral flanges of the sections of said ring and permanently secured adjacent the ends thereof, cylindrical pins mounted for reciprocation Within said sockets, a shoulder formed on said pins and integral therewith,, a reduced portion extending from said shoulder, the center portion of said arcuatesections being permanently secured to said reduced portions of said pins, coil springs mounted within said sockets and the said annular shoulder adapted to retain said coil springs within said sockets substantially as and for the purpose described.

In testimony whereofl hereunto atiix my signature in the presence of two Witnesses.

, VALTER THQMPSON.

, Witnesses:

' JAMES M."lI-roMrsoN,

Haney R. WRIGHT. 

